SKIN DEEP; Face It, Princess, Your Skin Is Probably Quite Common

By NATASHA SINGER

Published: October 13, 2005

DO you have sensitive skin? Chances are you think you do. Fifty-seven percent of American women describe their skin as sensitive, according to a recent survey by Alberto-Culver Custom Research, a division of the Alberto-Culver cosmetics company.

Kerry Allen, 35, a manager in the garment industry in New York, is one of them. ''Most products clog my pores and make my skin red, bumpy and itchy,'' she said last weekend as she perused the makeup counters at Saks Fifth Avenue in Manhattan. To keep skin irritation at bay, she prefers Erno Laszlo's line for extremely dry skin, and mild cleansers and moisturizers with olive oil extracts from N.V. Perricone.

''My face doesn't like certain ingredients like harsh astringents or heavy oils,'' Ms. Allen said. ''Because I have sensitive skin, I spend a fortune on products.''

Many women are just as particular about their beauty regimens. The sensitive skin category has become a $900 million business in the United States, with sales up about 13 percent since 2000, according to Euromonitor International, a market research firm. The appellation now appears on everything from moisturizers to eye makeup removers. And then there are the feminine hygiene cleansing cloths, the disposable razors and the microdermabrasion kit.

But many people who buy these products do not need them, doctors and beauty experts say, because most women who think they have sensitive skin really do not. And for the small minority -- an estimated 2 percent of women -- who have what doctors describe as ''sensitive skin syndrome,'' even some of the niche products are too harsh.

''Everybody thinks they have sensitive skin,'' said Rose Motta, a skin care specialist at the Clarins counter at Saks. ''The idea of having sensitive skin is a kind of status symbol that means they think their skin is unique or especially delicate.''

Clarins makes six specialized products, including Gentle Day Cream for Sensitive Skin ($55). But the company trains its advisers to sell them only to consumers who truly have a history of chronic skin ailments with symptoms like itching and burning. For everyone else, Ms. Motta said, ''if their faces aren't irritated, they may be sensitive souls, but they don't have sensitive skin.''

The word ''sensitive'' on a label can have a variety of meanings. On some products it means the formula lacks fragrances, dyes, alcohol or emulsifiers to which some consumers are allergic. On others it signals the presence of an ingredient meant to calm the skin: aloe vera, cucumber, chamomile, green tea or vitamin E. Still other products employ the term to connote a milder or less abrasive formulation of an existing product.

''There is no industry standard for what sensitive skin means or for making sensitive skin claims,'' said Lauren Thaman Hodges, the global director of beauty science at Procter & Gamble, the parent company of Olay. ''It's a very broad term.''

Some of the products may do more to calm customer anxiety than to soothe skin. ''We have to please those consumers who think they have sensitive skin,'' said Usha Murthy, a section manager of St. Ives facial care. ''They know they broke out once or once had redness, and they think they are sensitive,'' Ms. Murthy said.

Such breakouts may be caused by medical conditions like acne, psoriasis or rosacea. True sensitive skin syndrome is the inability of otherwise healthy skin to tolerate most cosmetics, said Dr. Albert M. Kligman, a professor emeritus of dermatology at the School of Medicine of the University of Pennsylvania. Dr. Kligman, who is credited with coining the term in 1990, said the symptoms are sensory rather than visible and include itching, burning, stinging, dryness and a feeling of tightness. Nicknamed ''stingers,'' these patients often liken the harsh sensation they get after applying products to a bad sunburn.

''When I put products on my face, my skin gets itchy,'' said Cathy Smith, 56, a manager for a computer parts wholesaler in Atlanta. Her dermatologist advised her to avoid perfumed products as well as foaming cleansers, she said. She has discovered a few cosmetics, like Kiehl's Supremely Gentle Eye Makeup Remover ($15.50), that don't inflame her face. ''My skin gets irritated by most cosmetics whether they are for sensitive skin or not,'' she said. ''So I don't try new products. I just stick to what I know.''

This kind of hypersensitivity, sometimes called cosmetic intolerance, can be caused by overuse of cosmetics or by having too many facial peels or other procedures that weaken the skin's protective barrier, said Dr. Andrew Scheman, a dermatologist in Chicago. The condition is often temporary, but it can take months to resolve.

Carrie Coletta, 33, an aesthetician in Palos Hills, Ill., found that her sensitive skin condition was worsened by all products, no matter what the formulation. Dr. Scheman, Ms. Coletta's dermatologist, said that many products for sensitive skin are not tested on the faces of people who have been found by doctors to have cosmetic intolerance, but on the backs or forearms of volunteers who describe their skin as sensitive.